Welcome! The following is
a list of the Survey Questions that will be asked during the telephone
interview. After you have had an opportunity to review the questions, you
can request to be contacted for the interview at a specific time and date of your
choice by clicking on the “Contact Us / Schedule
Appointment” link on the left of the page.

The first part of the interview is
called Contact Verification.

Contact Verification

1.)Currently,
how many employees do you have at this location?

2.)How
many do you expect to have at this time next year?

3.)May
I have your name?

4.)May
I have your title?

5.)Email
collection

Our researchers will read a list of
occupations that are likely found in your industry. They will then ask you the
following staffing questions for each occupation.

Staffing
Questions

6.)How
many <occupation> do you have?

7.)How
many will you need to hire in the next 90 days?

8.)How
many do expect to have at this time next year?

9.)What
is the annual turnover for this occupation?

Our researchers will then ask you the
following questions for some of the individual occupations you stated as
having.

Occupational
Specific Questions

10.)I
will now ask you about your <read
number> <occupation>.

11.)How
long does it take to fill a vacancy for experienced <occupation>?

qLess
than 2 weeks

qTwo
to 4 weeks

q1-3
months

q3-6
months

qMore
than 6 months

qDon’t
know

qDon't
hire experienced

12.)How
long does it take to fill a vacancy for a non-experienced <occupation>?

qLess
than 2 weeks

qTwo
to 4 weeks

q1-3
months

q3-6
months

qMore
than 6 months

qDon’t
know

qDon't
hire non-experienced

13.)How
much work experience do you require for this occupation?

qNone

qUnder
3 months

q3
to under 6 months

q6
months to under 12 months

q1
to under 2 years

q2
to under 4 years

q4
to under 10 years

q10
years or more

qDon’t
know

14.)Which
of the following skills are most important for this occupation?

qCustomer Service Skills

qBasic Math and Reading Skills

qTechnical Skills

qComputer Skills

qCommunication Skills

qNone

qDon’t Know

15.)Do
you require an occupational license or certification for this occupation?

qYes

qNo

qDon’t
know

16.)What
is the PREFERRED education level for this occupation?

qNone

qHigh
school/GED

qSome
college

qAssociate
degree

qBS/BA

qGraduate
degree or above

qDon’t
know

17.)What
percentage of your current workers in this occupation have this PREFERRED
education level?

qAll

qOver
75%

qOver
50%

qLess
than 50%

qDon’t
Know

18.)What
is the starting salary range for a NON-EXPERIENCED<occupation>?

19.)What
is the starting salary range for EXPERIENCED <occupation>?

The final
part of the interview will consist of the following non-occupation specific
questions.

Supplemental
Survey Questions

1. What
standard employee benefits does your company provide for its employees?Choose ALL that apply…

qMedical

qDental

qPension
program

q401k
SAR/SEP (401K program for small businesses)

qStock
options

qPaid
Vacations and Holidays

qTuition
reimbursement

qChild
care

qOther

qNone

qDon’t
Know

2.The US Conference Board has
defined workplace literacy as including the following skills: reading; math;
communicating effectively in English; learning, understanding, and applying
information and analysis; thinking critically and acting logically to solve
problems; using technology, tools, and information systems; working in
teams.Do you believe that deficiencies of
“workplace literacy” are a significant problem affecting productivity among
your workers?

qYes

qNo

qDon’t Know

If yes,
go to 3, if no skip to 4

3Of the following, which
would you consider to be the TWO most common deficiencies among workers now
employed in your organization?

qReading skills

qMath skills

qCommunicating
effectively in English

qLearning,
understanding, and applying information and analysis

qThinking critically
and acting logically to solve problems

qUsing technology,
tools, and information systems

qWorking in teams

qNone

qDon’t Know

4.Of the following, which
would you consider to be the TWO most common deficiencies among recent
applicants for jobs in your organization?

qReading skills

qMath skills

qCommunicating
effectively in English

qLearning,
understanding, and applying information and analysis

qThinking critically
and acting logically to solve problems

qUsing technology,
tools, and information systems

qWorking in teams

qNone

qDon’t Know

5. Which
of the following would you consider as Barriers to Retaining your Employees?

qTransportation Issues

qChildcare/eldercare

qAdvancement Opportunities

qWorking Hours

qBenefits Offered

qWages

qEmployment Preparation / Training

qOther

qNone

qDon’t Know

6.How would you describe employee absenteeism
in your company?

qNot a significant problem

qA problem but isolated to a small
group of employees

qA very significant

qDon’t Know

7. Which
of the following reasons do your supervisors report for employee
absenteeism?

qLegitimate illness

qTransportation Issues

qChildcare problems

qSubstance abuse

qAlcoholism

qEmployee work ethic

qOther

qNone

qDon’t Know

8. Are
any of your employees represented by Labor Unions?

qYes

qNo

qDon’t Know

9. On
scale of 1 to 7, 1 being the least productive 7 being the most productive, how
would you rate the productivity of your company’s workforce?

Additional Survey
Questions for the City of Surprise

1.About what percentage of your employees are from the City of Surprise? Would you say…

qFrom 0 to 20%

q21% to
40%

q41% to
60%

q61% to 80%

q81% to 100%

qDon’t
Know

2.What percentage of your workforce is made up of workers 55 or older?

qFrom 0 to 20%

q21% to
40%

q41% to
60%

q61% to 80%

q81% to 100%

qDon’t
Know

Only ask this question is the employer responded other
than don’t know to question number 2 above.

3.How would you rate the skills and productivity of these workers compared
to your other workers?

qOlder
workers are more productive

qNo
difference

qYounger
workers are more productive

qDon’t
know

4.What has been the average annual percentage change in wages over the
past three years at your company?

q4.6% or more annually

q3.1 to 4.5%

q1.6 to 3.0%

q0 to 1.5%

qwages declined

qdon’t know

5.What do you anticipate the annual increase in wages will be in the next
1-3 years?

q4.6% or more annually

q3.1 to 4.5%

q1.6 to 3.0%

q0 to 1.5%

qWages will probably declined

qdon’t know

6. Have
you considered working with your community college to address your workforce
needs?

qYes,
I've worked with them

qNo,
my workforce training needs are addressed by other organizations

qNo,
not aware that they provided customized training resources

qNo,
do not need workforce training services

qDon’t
Know

7. Which
of the following higher education programs or courses would benefit your
business?